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Levka’s heart nearly stopped when he saw Caitlin go under. He swore he would learn to swim if it killed him. Before now, neither he nor any of his friends had had any desire to learn.
When she resurfaced, she looked horrified. Then she quickly swam out of the water, her lips blue, but her eyes smiling. “Man, is the water cold!”
Without hesitation, Levka yanked off his shirt and covered her with it. Rubbing her arms vigorously, he warmed the siren…his siren up.
She smiled. “I did it! I…” Her teeth clattered. “I got in, and I wasn’t afraid. If it hadn’t been so cold, I really would have swum to the waterfall.”
“You nearly gave me a heart attack when you went under.” He kissed her cold, wet cheek.
“I’m sorry, Levka. I promise when I get better about the water, I’ll teach you how to swim. Though a warmer place would be better.”
“I’d like that.”
She looked around. “Where are Arman and Stasio?”
“They hiked up to the second waterfall.”
“Oh, let me get dressed! I want to go, too.”
“It’s a forty-five minute hike.”
“I’m game. Only…” Losing her balance, she grabbed Levka’s arm. “…do you feel kind of funny? Like we’re still on board the ship rolling back and forth in the ocean?”
“Yeah. We still have our sea legs.”
As soon as she was dressed, they began the hike up toward the second fall through a nutmeg plantation that smelled heavenly of sweet and spicy nutmeg. Blood red soil dotted the mountainsides where vegetation had been cleared.
Levka picked a small red fruit off a tree that looked like a miniature apple. “Taste.”
Caitlin bit into the fruit and smiled. “It has the texture and taste like a pear. What is it?”
“A French cashew.”
Caitlin laughed. “If you had told me that to begin with I would have thought it was a really strange-looking nut.”
A few feet away, Levka pulled cocoa off a yellow tree growth. He opened one, revealing a gooey white substance surrounding about twenty cocoa beans. “Rip off a bean and suck on it.”
Caitlin hesitated, then smiled. “Okay, I’ll trust you just this once.” She took the bean covered in the white sticky stuff and touched her tongue to it. “Hmm, really sweet.”
“And to think you didn’t trust me.”
“You’ve got to admit, it looks kind of yucky.”
He pointed to a spring. “You can drink from the natural spring water, too.”
She sipped from the cold water, then they continued their trek.
Surrounded by tropical vegetation on the narrow trail, they were halfway to the second waterfall when Vlad suddenly appeared from behind a teakwood tree. He smiled, but the look was menacing enough for Levka to tighten his hold on Caitlin’s hand.
“Vlad’s here,” Levka communicated to Arman and Stasio.
“We’re on our way,” Arman said.
“Alone at last, I see.” Vlad stalked toward them.
Levka pulled Caitlin behind him.
“Why don’t you go find another one like her? You don’t really care for her like I do,” Vlad said.
